


The Moon Pulls On Me

by Hitsugi_Zirkus



Category: Lamento -BEYOND THE VOID-
Genre: F/M, Flowers, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-19
Updated: 2016-01-19
Packaged: 2018-05-14 22:13:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5760862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hitsugi_Zirkus/pseuds/Hitsugi_Zirkus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The forest of Sisa is alive once more, and Konoe's memories of his mother are tinged with warm light and the flowers woven in her hair.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Moon Pulls On Me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [yxxv](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yxxv/gifts).



> So at the beginning of this month, there came a discussion of Konoe's mom and it got especially passionate between me and Mel, who ended up providing basically the whole framework for this fic. THANKS FOR THE FEELS, MEL. I tried to implement all the things you tossed out there in our convo because it was all. SO GOOD and I need others to suffer in feels. 
> 
> As such, this fic is gifted for Mel~ We just. Have a lot of emotions about Konoe's mom that comes down to us wishing she had been a more prominent figure in the game somehow. So we took matters into our own hands. Hope you all enjoy~

Memories of life before the Void were scarce. Some of the older cats might’ve been able to remember something of brighter days and being able to wander the outskirts of Sisa’s forest with laughter. In those days, cats walked hand in hand with their families, could live happily with their lovers, and mothers could look forward to nurturing their kittens in a world blessed by the two moons. 

Konoe knew that such a dream was snatched away from so many the day the Sisa began to die. Konoe himself was barely a few years old when he watched the Moon of Light’s brilliance wane little by little. The magic of the forest had begun to fade. The fireflies he liked catching in the summer stopped coming out. But even in the face of the looming darkness, when Konoe closed his eyes, looking up at the two moons, he could imagine their light making a soothing halo around long blond hair - the golden fall of his mother’s hair. 

“What was she like?” 

It was Asato who asked. They were snuggled together for the evening after a day of hunting. In their idle chatter, Asato proposed that they visit the secret garden together, since it had been awhile, and Asato said himself that the flowers lasted long through the winter. Konoe couldn’t imagine how they could survive the frost, but he was indeed excited at visiting the magical spot with Asato. From there, a peculiar thought had entered his mind.

His mother. Oh, how she would’ve loved to see such a garden. She used to lament over not seeing the flowers in the winter. During the cold season was the only time Konoe had ever seen her without any blooms woven in her hair. When he mused about all of it out loud, that was when Asato’s tail had swayed in interest and he’d asked his question. 

As for answering it, Konoe wasn’t sure how to go about it. He’d been awfully young when she died. But even now, with the memories blurred from the passage of time, Konoe was fairly certain that she was everything the world had been lacking when the Void started taking its toll on Sisa. 

“I was maybe six when she died, so I don’t remember a lot,” he started to answer. “I remember her ears and tail were the same color as mine. Her hair was long and blond, always with flowers in it. She was...” Konoe grappled for the correct word, to describe the feelings his mother had left him, the aura her presence gave. “Pleasant,” he finally settled. “And warm.  She’d pinch my ear if I misbehaved, and took extra care to groom the crooked part of my tail, saying she loved it. She did a lot of mother-type things, I guess you could say.” 

Asato laughed a little, a fond sound in his throat. But it was quiet. “Oh,” he said, “so that’s what a mother is like.” He said it so casually, bringing Konoe closer to rest his chin on top of Konoe’s head. 

If Konoe’s mother was still here, he was pretty certain that she and Asato would get along and approve of each other. It made him wonder the opposite, if Asato’s mother would like him, had they met. But that was pointless thing to muse about when Asato hadn’t met his mother before she died. It was a sad thing to think about, and even sadder when one thought just how many cats had grown up without one parent or both during the time of the Void. And although it was true that both he and Asato had grown up independent, at least Konoe had these few memories of his mother, illuminated in fuzzy light. Anyone would want to think that they had such a maternal figure in their life. Anyone would want to believe that even if the world had once been plunged in darkness, they had at least entered this life embraced in that warm, loving light. Maybe if they held onto that belief, then there was a chance that that light had faded to come live inside them. 

Konoe jumped at the feeling of Asato’s tongue grooming his ear. “H-hey…”

“It’s strange,” Asato murmured into his ear. “Even though you were born with Leaks’ face, you still got your mother’s ears and tail. His curse couldn’t touch you completely. Your fur changed later, but your true colors, the ones you were born with… As I thought, even Konoe’s mother is amazing, for her love to still have been so strong as to not have Leaks claim you fully.” 

Touched by the sweet words, Konoe found himself speechless. His appearance had for the most part been something he never thought of, nothing aside from his crooked tail. And then Leaks had come, wearing his face, and Konoe had thought for the first time that he wished to have any features but the one forced into his cursed DNA. All he could see was Leaks’ wearing his lips in a cruel smirk, and the black of his ears and tail. 

Yet the colors Konoe had been born with had been his mother’s. 

“I...I had no idea,” he said quietly. 

Spurred by Konoe’s rush of sentiment, Asato nuzzled into his hair. “I would’ve loved to meet such an amazing cat as Konoe’s mother. You got Shui’s voice, and you may have gotten Leaks’ face, but what makes Konoe Konoe is the one that was beside you in the beginning.” 

Oh, it had been so long ago. Those dreamy days filled with love were such distant memories. Konoe forgot what his mother’s hugs felt like, he forgot the exact shade of her blue eyes, and even her voice was far away. Yet the emotions flying up inside his heart like a gale of spring wind were full of yearning and loss that he hadn’t permitted himself to feel when he first lost his mother. 

Asato apologized quietly when Konoe started to silently cry, curling up inside Asato’s arms. 

* * *

On Konoe’s suggestion, he and Asato were making a journey to Karou.

Long journeys generally weren’t advised during the winter, so Konoe had waited until requesting the travel. He supposed it was for the best, as it would give him time to be prepared for what was waiting in Karou. 

The dissipation of the Void had undoubtedly given way for life to return to Sisa. But as for what was lost… Those were the things that couldn’t return to them, no matter what. The cats that died from the Sickness, the plants that had gotten discolored from disease - there was no bringing them back. New life simply formed over it all. Karou had been where Konoe lived all his life, yet he hadn’t once stepped into its borders since he’d returned to see it utterly distorted by the Void. Years had passed, yet this was the first time he was making the trip back. But Konoe wanted to, and he knew he had to be prepared for what could be there. 

So, one early spring day, he and Asato made their way to Karou. Asato kept his mind as busy as he could, pointing out the new life and paths that had opened up. No other cats showed up in their travels, which was good since seeing anyone else was always fifty-fifty - they’d either be a merchant or a cat looking to start trouble. 

“Ah, what’s that?” Konoe’s ears perked up, alert, his voice having an unsure edge to it. 

Asato didn’t seem to sure what Konoe was talking about, but still he put a protective arm out to shield Konoe from whatever it was that was coming. 

Konoe pointed over near a flat patch of land with perfect blades of light-green grass stretching up to the light. Here and there some wildflowers were already swaying their buds and early blooms. Dancing back and forth between them in an excited fashion was a small creature. It had wings that fluttered animatedly as it went about its business, a light-yellow color like cream. 

“It doesn’t look dangerous.”

Asato lowered his arm and joined Konoe in taking slow steps so as not to startle their new friend as they observed it. It was some insect, like the fireflies or crickets Konoe used to see in the summer. His memories didn’t pull up anything on this new creature in particular, but he thought maybe he remembered some of its variants, with orange wings or shimmering blue wings. 

The pretty flutterer zipped around their legs before taking off to the next patch of grass, joining with another, slightly bigger one that came from another direction. They spun around each other like partners in a waltz, then flew off together. Konoe laughed a little fondly at their interaction, then he looked up at Asato, still smiling.

“We should get going too, huh? We’re almost there, come on.” 

Asato nodded, and reached down to thread his fingers with Konoe’s left hand. Konoe squeezed his lover’s hand, somehow feeling a little less anxious than before as he led the way to his old home. 

* * *

Karou was still abandoned.

As far as Konoe could sense, there were no other cats around. The decrepit huts that scattered the land looked forgotten. Yet somehow, it wasn’t in a sad way. As they walked along the edge of the small village, it was obvious how over the years nature had delicately taken the remains of Karou into its cupped hands. Grass grew tall enough to tickle their knees, and vines and moss had latched onto the stone and wood of the huts. Between the patchy roofs tiny flowers had become to bloom. Normal, lively and vivid color had returned, all the distorting hues melted away as if they’d just been a horrible nightmare. 

Konoe tried not to look too deeply within the puddles of grass for a sign of any of the bodies that had been warped and left for dead with the Sickness had struck in full. The memory of it alone was enough to dizzy his vision - the missing limbs, the twisted bodies… But no such sights greeted them, as if the earth had gently tucked these unfortunate cats away. Konoe wanted to think of it like that. All cats should have the opportunity to return back to the forest. 

In the middle of his musings, he bumped into Asato, who at some point had gotten in front of him. Asato apologized, then nodded to the hut in front of them. “This is yours, isn’t it? Even after all this time, it still has Konoe’s scent.” 

“You followed your nose here?” Konoe smiled in mild amusement, squeezing Asato’s hand again. His hut, like so many of the others, had evidence of nature taking over it.

Asato gazed at the sight along with him, taking it all in like a slow inhale. At the end of that breath, Asato turned to him again, his expression soft and pliant. “You really okay with coming back here?” he asked quietly. It wasn’t that he disagreed with Konoe’s decision - most likely, it was just that he didn’t wish to see that same crying face Konoe had after the last time he was here. 

To reassure his lover, Konoe butted his head into Asato’s shoulder. “I’m fine. It’s been a few years, and the Void is gone, so I’ve had time to try and come to peace with what happened here. I don’t,” he lowered his eyes, touching his chest right over his heart, “I don’t want to be trapped by anger like Leaks once was, when he lost his home.” 

Carefully, Asato nodded. “What is it you wanted from here?”

Konoe shook his head. “I guess, with that talk before about my mother… I remembered that Karou was the last place she’d existed.” He beckoned Asato to follow him as he eased the door open. 

An earthy scent greeted them, and the inside was mostly dim despite the Moon of Light still hovering in the sky. One of the small doors to the window was broken, fallen to the ground that now had small patches of grass growing. The bed Konoe had once slept in, now weathered down and covered with dirt. The pots of provisions and shelves were now sheeted with dust, and the small bowl that Konoe once used for his guiding leaves had all the water evaporated. 

Like last time, Asato seemed a bit reluctant to be inside, like he didn’t want to intrude in what was once Konoe’s home. Now that Konoe had pulled him in, Asato was standing awkwardly off to the side near the bed, but even then he took up quite a bit of space in the cramped hut. Asato looked around silently, taking the memories within the walls in. This place contained in its small frame all the nights of Konoe staying up by the light of the guiding leaf, of the rainy days when Konoe gathered up the water from leaks in bowls, of many winters shaking the snow off of him. But this place also held the memories of his mother, who used to cuddle Konoe to sleep, who would hum as she prepared food, and who left dried flowers on the shelf. 

“I don’t really have any mementos of my mother like I do with my father’s ring.” Konoe said it quietly, looking around the room too, reading the unseen memories. He made his way to the shelves, all the small pots and random baubles resting in the same spots as he had left him in. Konoe’s gaze lifted up. “But when I started thinking about her, I did remember this one thing, something I had forgotten since it had been so long since she died.” 

“A memento from your mother?” 

“Yeah. Up here.” Konoe reached up to the topmost shelf in the hut. Up there was an extra bowl and plate that had once been his mother’s. But that wasn’t what Konoe was looking for. He felt around, then his fingertips hit something else, and that was what he brought down. 

Asato had come over now in one easy step, looking over Konoe’s shoulder at the object in his hands. 

It was of course thickly layered with dust, more so than anything else in the hut, as it hadn’t been touched in well over a decade. But Konoe knew its rectangular shape, smaller than he thought it’d be, which was to be expected since he had become an adult since the last time he saw it. Konoe got to work trying to get the dust off. 

“Mom left this behind when she died. I remember she’d look inside it quite often, and she even showed me what was inside once. But since she always put it on the top shelf, I could never reach it. By the time I could, I had forgotten about it… Ah, there.” It took some work, but finally worn red leather was peeking out under the dust. 

“That’s… A book?” 

Konoe nodded, turning it to its side so that the pages were visible. “Yeah. Kind of a journal, but nothing is really in it.” He looked up to Asato, smiling with the knowledge of this secret. “Do you want to see what’s inside?”

Surprised, Asato’s ears stood straight up. “Is that alright?” 

“Of course, since I’m offering. Besides, I think you might like it.” Konoe carefully eased the book open, taking care for the contents not to come spilling out. 

The pages were a bit yellowed and musty from age, but nonetheless, pressed perfectly there was a single dried flower. The stem was long-since shriveled, and the petals had lost most of the vibrancy of its color, but still the preserved memory of it continued to make it just as beautiful. Every page in the journal had a flower or two pressed between its pages, and sometimes it was accompanied by a name and a small message of affection. 

Asato frowned at one of these pages with writing, and pointed to it. “This. What does this say?” 

The ink was a bit faded, but nonetheless, Konoe could read it. “It says ‘For Katsuki’,” he said with a small smile. “Katsuki is...my mother’s name. And the message and all these flowers are things my father had given to her over the years of them being together. Dad… Shui, was always out in the forest doing one thing or another, so he’d come back with these, since Mom always had them in her hair. She kept them all…” 

“They’re pretty,” Asato said, giving an experimental sniff. “Their scent is still in the pages.”

“Haha, you have a really sharp nose, don’t you? As expected when you were raised in Kira.” Konoe closed the book, running a hand over it. “A lot of precious memories are in this book. That’s why, I want to return them to her, now that I can. I’m sure that would make her happy.” 

“Return them to her?” 

Konoe nodded, tucking the book away to his pouch before holding Asato’s hand again. “Come on, I’ll show you.” With that, he lead Asato along, and he closed the door to his hut for the last time. 

* * *

_Ransen was a big city. It was easy to get lost or overwhelmed by the crowd if one wasn’t careful. It was also a place in which one wasn’t likely to see the same face twice of a passerby._

_ Yet somehow, somehow he was standing in front of her again.  _

_ “Ah,” he sighed with a relieved smile, “I’m glad I found you again.”  _

_ “You,” she said, mildly surprised, “you’re the cat that was singing on the street the other day, weren’t you?”  _

_ “I am. And you’re the cat I heard humming along.” His green eyes glimmered knowingly at her surprise that he had managed to hear her that time. “You have a good ear for music, don’t you? That was a song I had composed myself, yet you picked up the melody perfectly.”  _

_ Under that gentle stare, she looked away, feeling embarrassed. “It was a captivating melody, so without thinking, I just…” Come to think of it, she wasn’t sure what had happened herself. She had just been passing through the streets on the way to get some items at the market for her parents when she heard that cat’s song sway warmly through the air. It danced as if the music had a body, and before she’d known it, she was a cat among the small crowd that had gathered to listen to the Poet singing and playing on his lute.  _

_ The song had seeped into her skin, ruffling her hair like the breeze, and seemed to run through her very blood - that was the only way she could describe the pleasant, penetrating resonance of the melody. It soothed her, and with it came the desire to become one with that song - and so, she had hummed along, quietly she thought. But at the end of the performance, there the Poet had been, smiling gratefully at her. _

_ “Sing with me next time.” _

_ His statement dragged her back to the present. “Impossible. I can’t sing,” she retorted flatly, embarrassment hot and red on her cheeks even as she tried to scowl.  _

_ The Poet laughed. “Such an expression! You shouldn’t press your ears so flat in displeasure.” He reached out, gently stroking her ear.  _

_ It flickered in his grasp, then stood straight from her surprise.  _

_ Noticing her hesitation, the Poet quickly withdrew this hand. “Oh! Sorry, that was rude. But I just got interested in the color of your fur. You see…” He moved to slide off his hood, his chin-length hair tickling his cheeks. At the same time, his ears too were revealed, white tips on top of light-brown fur.  _

_ “Oh… Oh!” Without realizing it, her tail started to flicker excitedly. “Your color, it’s the opposite.” She touched her ears, the white fur tipped with light-brown.  _

_ “Right~? How funny.” The Poet laughed. “I’m Shui.”  _

_ “Katsuki.”  _

_ “Katsuki.” Shui grinned. “That’s a perfect name for a singer.”  _

_ “It’s the name of a merchant’s only daughter,” she said meaningfully, trying to drive Shui out of his idea. They both laughed a little, their tails both swishing around, the tips close to touching, and Katsuki laughed out an amused breath at the sight of their opposing colors again.  _

_ “Nevertheless,” Shui said, “I think it’s a beautiful name.” _

* * *

_“I'm home, Katsuki~!”_

_ “Ah, welcome back!” Katsuki looked up from the herbs she was busy organizing. Her physician kept trying to insist that she needed to not do anything too strenuous, so helping out at her father’s shop was no longer an option, at least for the next few months. Still, Katsuki couldn’t keep still, so these days she spent her time doing what she could, including some few errands and picking herbs nearby. _

_ And, of course, prepare their home for a new guest.  _

_ Shui appeared in the room, coming over to nuzzle his nose affectionately into her shoulder. “I have a present for you,” he said. _

_ “Oh?” Katsuki perked up. Shui went out for his usual training as a Sanga almost every day, and while at first it had been a bit lonely, Katsuki was proud of Shui’s accomplishments. She’d believed in the power of his singing ever since she first met him, and she also believed in Shui’s dream to bring a new meaning to what a Sanga was - someone who reached another’s heart through song. As it was, he ventured out to the forest during his training sometimes, to parts even the daughter of a merchant cat had yet to explore. And out there, despite any dangers, there was an abundance of thriving life. _

_ With a dramatic flourish, Shui presented a few stems of enchanting blue flowers Katsuki had never seen before. Although they weren’t actually glowing, the vibrancy of their hue reminded her of the shine of the Moon of Light in the sky above them.  _

_ “Oh, Shui! They’re so pretty. What are they?”  _

_ “Aha, so even you have yet to see these. I’m told they’re called bluebells. A fitting name, don’t you think?” He gently shook them as if they would produce the silver sounds of a bell, and the petals ended up tickling her cheeks. He kissed her cheek. “They’re for you. I saw them and immediately thought of your eyes.”  _

_ “My eyes aren’t this blue, Shui!”  _

_ Laughing softly at her embarrassment, Shui kissed her cheek again. “Nonsense, it’s the exact shade, full of beauty. Just like my flower right here.” He embraced her in a warm hug, then pulled back. “I picked a few of them, so I can weave them into your braid, if you’d like.”  _

_ Shui did this so often - picking flowers and putting them into her hair. When they started talking more, he commented on the blooms she’d wear, and insisted he’d find the most beautiful flowers in Sisa for her to decorate her hair with. At first, Katsuki thought he’d been joking, but to date her long blond hair had had all manners of flowers in it.  _

_ So, smiling, Katsuki let Shui have her braid as he started meticulously weaving the bluebells in. “You’ve gotten better at this ever since your own hair started getting longer… Oh, do you mind if I borrow a stem?”  _

_ “Of course.” Shui smiled knowingly as he handed her one, the end of the flower’s petals curling perfectly.  _

_ Katsuki sniffed the flower, taking in its earthy, sweet scent. She loved this smell of life, of something so beautiful and flourishing with the energy of the forest. In that aspect, she felt like the forest too, full of soil that had a growing seed beneath the surface. And so, she brought the bluebells lower, right over her swelling stomach, lightly dusting the petals over it. _

_ “Smells wonderful, doesn’t it, Konoe?” _

* * *

 

_(“Say, Konoe… Your father… He used to compliment my name, you see. He said it was the name of a singer. Haha, well, as you know, he was the one that became such a well-known Sanga, not me.”_

_ The small form of a kitten stirred under Katsuki’s arms, the light of the setting Moon of Light full in its wide, honey-colored eyes.  _

_ “But well, there’s another part of my name too. And it’s from the moons. So, Konoe, if you’re ever scared, or you feel lonely, just remember - as surely as the two moons keep rising, then I’ll be there, watching over you. Until the day you too will find someone that makes you happy. Someone...who will give you flowers.  _

_ “Remember that, okay? Keep it all in your heart. That’s your blessing from me.”) _

 

* * *

“Konoe? Konoe!”

“Ah… I… Oh.” The world suddenly rushed before Konoe, time fast-forwarding to where his body stood in the present, in which he was an adult, no longer the kitten looking up at his mother under the bright rays of the Moon of Light. The images along with that one swirled to the back of his mind, once again distant memories, although they hadn’t been his own.

Konoe had forgotten about his empathy. It had been so long since he last used it, that he’d plucked up his mother’s precious journal without even realizing what could happen. What happened just now, he knew he’d seen into his mother’s memories. Quietly, stunned, he told Asato as much. 

With a worried breath, Asato brought him close, embracing him with one arm. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah. There wasn’t anything bad in there. It was...really happy.” 

“Then what are these?” Asato leaned in, perfectly licking up a stray tear that had begun to fall down Konoe’s cheek.  

“Oh, that’s…” He had no explanation for it. He wasn’t sure if these tears were his own or his mother’s. He supposed the appropriate reading for both their hearts was that they were mourning those days that had long since passed. But Konoe had found them again. He’d seen and felt his mother’s happiness, had seen Shui’s face again, had felt their love for each other and for him. Even if it was through another’s eyes, Konoe’s heart stirred with the familiarity of _family_. 

Even so… Not everything was lost. Konoe had his own proof of who he was now, and the happiness he’d worked hard to obtain. His source of happiness was holding him now, so close that Konoe could feel Asato’s heartbeat against his cheek. 

“Sorry. Sorry, it just gets overwhelming sometimes…” Konoe allowed his face to be showered in little kisses from Asato, losing himself in Asato’s soothing purr. 

“Do you want to go home?”

“No. No, I said I wanted to do this. Besides, we’re almost there.”

“Ah, that's actually what I wanted to ask. Where is ‘there’, Konoe?”

After a moment of remembering his surroundings, Konoe’s eyes fell on a cluster of trees that were close together in a sort of semi-circle, so close it was as if the branches were arms embracing one another. They were a familiar sight, albeit one Konoe hadn’t seen since he was a kitten. He nodded to them in gesture, walking forward and Asato automatically started to follow. 

“Here,” he said, rounding around the trees to where the circle opened up. And there, just as he remembered, was a large stone he’d found and put at the head of what had once been a freshly dug hole. 

Asato looked around in search for what was special about this place, so Konoe decided to help him. He bent down on one knee, smiling softly. 

“Hi, Mom. I’m home.” 

Behind him, Asato lost his breath. “Konoe… This is…”

“This is where I buried my mother when she died. My mother she...she loved the forest, more than anyone. So I wanted to return her to it.” Shui - he had probably seen a heart like his in her, and what was why they captivated each other so. 

Konoe patted the ground. “It’s been a long time though. When the Void came, it ate up this part of the forest, and I couldn’t visit her anymore. But now… This is the first time in a long time.” He went straight to business, taking a deep breath. “I know I look a lot different now, Mom. I’ve become an adult now, so I might be taller than you now. And...I know you probably have a lot of questions about my appearance.” 

The grass and leaves under Asato’s feet crunched as he shifted around. Without saying anything, Konoe already knew that Asato was starting to fret about useless things. They’d had their talk already about Konoe’s missing arm, and Asato had been very good about accepting what happened ever since then. But since he was being introduced to Konoe’s mother, he thought that anxiety was a bit understandable.

So, to soothe those nerves, Konoe reached out with his hand to bring Asato’s to his cheek. He nuzzled into it, starting to purr. Almost immediately, his lover began to calm down, and he slowly sank to the ground to join Konoe. 

“Mom, you don’t have to worry. This cat here, I wanted to introduce him to you. He’s the one," he smiled at Asato, "the one that you told me I'd meet. The one who would give me flowers." Taking in Asato's surprised yet touched expression, Konoe turned back to the grave. "So I'm being taken care of now. And I look after him too, just in case he ever starts worrying too much too. Which he does - a lot." 

"K-Konoe!" 

"Hey, but - I really cherish him. So now that the world you loved is back, I wanted you two to meet." 

Suddenly on the spot, Asato looked at a loss for words. He floundered a bit, but finally he steeled himself, giving the grave a respectful look. "Katsuki-san," he said quietly, squeezing Konoe's hand, "I promise to take care of Konoe. I'll make him happy every day of his life. I'll make sure he never regrets placing his trust and love in me. Thank you, Katsuki-san, for bringing Konoe to this world and giving him your heart." 

Although embarrassed by the sincere words, Konoe felt his heart soar happily at Asato's words, as if a hundred of the fluttering creatures from before were let loose from his chest. And with those promises, Konoe got out the journal from his pouch. 

"I found this at home. I thought you'd want it back. You must've been restless about me and Shui. But you can be at peace - everything is okay now." 

_I know, because the two moons are no longer crying_. 

Both Asato and Konoe smiling, they stood up, still holding hands, tails intertwined. "Well then, Mom. I'll see you later." 

The two cats walked off, leaving behind them Katsuki's resting spot, with a flower-filled journal resting between the tender embrace of the bluebells that had grown there. 

**Author's Note:**

> The name for Konoe's mom was made up by Mel! The spelling for Katsuki she chose was just perfect: Katsuki (歌月), in which "歌" (ka) is "song/sing" and "月" (tsuki) means month/moon. That's why Shui said she had the name for a singer, and why Katsuki said the moons would be proof she's watching over Konoe. Mel also made up a design for Katsuki which I'm gonna gently peer pressure her to post at some point *leans into you Mel* 
> 
> As for the bluebells, in hanakotoba, they mean "grateful". I chose them mostly for the color, but I think Katsuki really did worry about Shui and Konoe a lot, so I'm sure she's very happy that Konoe found someone special to look after him (and in "Rhapsody to the Past", she showed gratefulness to Leaks, who had become Shui's friend and lifted his spirits).
> 
> Justice for Konoe's mom 2k16 ;u; I hope y'all liked! To join me for more Lamento screaming visit me at twitter (@fuwajellyfish)


End file.
